A Study Guide for Mari Evans's "When in Rome"

By Gale and Cengage

A Study Guide for Mari Evans's "When in Rome," excerpted from Gale's acclaimed Poetry for Students. This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more. For any literature project, trust Poetry for Students for all of your research needs.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cengage Learning - Gale
• Release date: Sep 2, 2016
• ISBN: 9781535842785

Book preview

When In Rome

Mari Evans

1970

Introduction

When In Rome by Mari Evans was published in 1970 in her collection I Am A Black Woman. It is one of Evans's best known and most widely anthologized poems. It is a poem of conflict between a housemaid named Mattie, and her employer, and involves themes of race and class difference as well as unspeakable frustration. It was published during the height of the Black Arts movement, a particularly significant time for African American literature. Evans, a prolific writer for the movement, has been an outspoken advocate for equal rights. Her writing frequently deals with issues of race. When In Rome can be found in Reality in Conflict: Literature of Values in Opposition by Edmund J. Farrell.

Author Biography

Evans was born in Toledo, Ohio, on July 16, 1923. Growing up, her father was her greatest influence. In her essay My Father's Passage, she recalls an formative moment in her early life that sparked her interest in writing: her father saved a story by Evans that was published in her school newspaper when she was in fourth grade. Evans remained in her hometown throughout her college years and studied fashion design at the University of Toledo. However, fashion did not sustain her interest and she soon shifted her focus to writing. Her first writing-related job was as an assistant editor at a manufacturing